A parallel Worlds

The artists JR and Marco are not self-promoting but it is worth hearing how Face to Face began in their own words.

When we met in 2005, we decided to go together in the Middle-East to figure out why Palestinians and Israelis couldn't find a way to get along together..

We then travelled across the Israeli and Palestinian cities without speaking much. Just looking to this world with amazement.

This holy place for Judaism, Christianity and Islam. This tiny area where you can see mountains, sea, deserts and lakes, love and hate, hope and despair embedded together.

After a week, we had a conclusion with the same words: these people look the same; they speak almost the same language, like twin brothers raised in different families.

A religious covered woman has her twin sister on the other side. A farmer, a taxi driver, a teacher, has his twin brother in front of him. And he his endlessly fighting with him.

It's obvious, but they don't see that.

We must put them face to face. They will realize.

We want that, at last, everyone laughs and thinks when he sees the portrait of the other and his own portrait.

The Face2Face project is to make portraits of Palestinians and Israelis doing the same job and to post them face to face, in huge formats, in unavoidable places, on the Israeli and the Palestinian sides.

In a very sensitive context, we need to be clear. We are in favour of a solution for which two countries, Israel and Palestine would live peacefully within safe and internationally recognized borders.

All the bilateral peace projects (Clinton/Taba, Ayalon/Nussibeh, Geneva Accords) are converging in the same direction. We can be optimistic.

We hope that this project will contribute to a better understanding between Israelis and Palestinians.

Today, "Face to face" is necessary. Within a few years, we will come back for "Hand in Hand".

To learn more about the Face2Face project, please visit their website by clicking Face2FaceProject.com

Maximilian Büsser

We do not intend for Our World to get into the heated and decisive waters of politics or religion; however, the Face2Face project really hit me hard as an extremely worthwhile project.

My first contact with Face to Face was seeing enormous photos of Israelis and Palestinians laughing side by side on the infamous wall around Jerusalem. They encouraged me to learn more.

This artistic project is independent (not sponsored), intelligent, witty and carrying a wonderful message of peace.